You've Changed
by Beatus Astral
Summary: When Lily realizes her fellow Head was her greatest rival during her first years at Hogwarts, she also comes to notice something else, something she'd thought she would never have lived to see- James Potter has changed. No longer the arrogant prat James gradually matured from, Lily is alarmed at the fact that she is beginning to take an unusual liking to this change.
1. Chapters 1&2

Hi guys! I'm a huge fan of the Harry Potter series, and Jily is literally my OTP of all time. This is my first fanfiction so make sure to leave a review if there's anything you'd like to share. Thank you and I promise it gets better as the chapter goes by so keep reading!

 **You've Changed**

 **Background:**

When Lily realizes her fellow Head was her greatest rival during her first years at Hogwarts, she also comes to notice something else, something she'd thought she would never have lived to see- James Potter has changed. No longer the arrogant prat James gradually matured from, Lily is alarmed at the fact that she is beginning to take an unusual liking to this change. What now?

 **Disclaimer:**

Just to let you know, I do not own Harry Potter or any characters, etc.. All I came up with was the plot… unfortunately. Anyway, hope you enjoy a lot!

 **Chapter 1: The Surprising News**

Her hands shaking, Lily slowly opened the letter the shady grey owl delivered. Careful not to tear the Hogwarts seal, she pulled out the crisp letter enclosed.

 _Dear Ms. Evans,_

 _We are pleased to inform you that you have been chosen as the Head Girl…_

Lily squealed with delight as she tore down the stairs, conditioned red hair bouncing in rhythm, "Mum! Dad!" The Evans couple stood up from the sofa as their younger daughter squeezed the air out of them both.

"Lily honey, what's going on?!" her mother gasped for air.

"IgottheheadgirlletterfromHogwarts!" she screeched as if her life depended on it.

"What'd you say darling?" her father asked, straining to understand.

Lily sat down slowly exhaling, preparing to repeat the exuberant news, "I got the Head Girl letter from Hogwarts!"

Her parents glanced at eachother, faces glowing with pride as they hugged the air out of her again.

"Oh Lily! We're soooo proud of you! Getting Head Girl! That's our daughter!" they cooed, congratulating her with kisses and even more hugs, leaving her breathless.

"Let's tell Petunia! And we can celebrate this honor with any dinner you choose," her father suggested warmly. "PET-" he started to call before his mouth was clamped over by a small but firm hand.

"NO! Dad we all know it's no use telling Petunia about this," Lily insisted.

"She's right, honey. We don't want any more fights between them right now," her mother stated calmly, looking worriedly at her husband.

"Alright, but who wants some cake?!" he shouted out of the blue.

They all giggled at his humourous shout out and ran to the kitchen to make some cake from scratch.

He tried breaking the news to his parents, but obviously they were too busy with stupid Auror business. He knew they would be so proud of him, but their jobs got in the way. James honestly thought Remus would get Head Boy. Being confused, but also excited, James decided to write Remus a letter to break the news to him.

 _Moony,_

 _Hey mate, I honestly thought you were gonna make it for the Head Boy deal. I dunno why mate, but I somehow got the letter instead. Hopefully there are no hard feelings. See ya later maybe._

 _-Prongs_

Not even an hour later, a reply came from Remus's speckled hazel owl.

 _Prongs,_

 _Obviously no hard feelings mate! I'm actually offended that you think I would be mad for YOU getting Head Boy. Yes, I was a bit surprised that you were chosen, but Dumbledore mentioned it would be quite a hassle for me because of my… you know, condition. I'm really happy for you! I think we all know who Head Girl will be. You should write to Padfoot and Wormtail. They would be really surprised. Hopefully Padfoot won't take things the wrong way, with you and Lily sharing dormitories and all._

 _-Moony_

James was so grateful he had friends like Remus. Wiping off the sweat on his forehead, he realized he was holding his breath until he got to the very end. He wanted to write back to Remus, but couldn't think of anything to elaborate on, so he just wrote a quick, _Thanks mate, I really appreciate it._ He decided against writing to  Sirius and Peter to keep it a surprise. He smirked, imagining their expressions when he tells them. James hadn't thought about Head Girl until Moony mentioned it, and his face brightened at the thought of sharing a dormitory with Lily. Unfortunately, he wouldn't get the opportunity to share a room with her, but he should savor what he had. It was his last year at Hogwarts, and he was going to make it worth it.

 **Chapter 2: Diagon Alley**

Her, Lily Evans, was Head Girl! She just couldn't get it in her mind. Her fingers continuously traced the edges of her Head Girl pin in her coat pocket. She was shopping in Diagon Alley with two of her best friends- Marlene McKinnon and Alice "Longbottom" they call her, since she's currently dating Frank Longbottom. They already purchased a couple sets of new robes each, and some extra Gryffindor attire. Walking to Flourish and Blotts, the three of them passed the one boy they never wanted to see in their whole lives, along with his "posse", consisting of Sirius, Remus, and Peter.

Lily pretended not to notice as James threw her a wink, and she gave him a disgusted look, but blushed furiously and looked down to cover it up. She couldn't blame herself, boys never wink at her, except for James, but he had a major crush on her so… that didn't count. Anyway, she hated him.

"Hey, Sirius!" Marlene slurred, doing the rapid blinky thing flirting girls usually do.

"Sup, McKinnon," he replied, bored.

Marlene looked down like Lily, and the three girls continued walking, until another voice called out, "Lily! How's your summer been?"

She gazed up at Remus, who was genuinely smiling at her, expecting an answer. Lily glanced at Potter, who had lifted one eyebrow, had his arms crossed, and was staring contently at the two. A plan quickly formed in her mind. Lily subtly glanced back to Alice and Marlene, whispering two quick sentences to them and turned back around as if nothing happened. She then smirked a smirk that would have made any Slytherin proud.

Lily threw her arms around Remus's neck and leaped up, causing a situation where he had to catch her, or they both would have fell. Knowing the kind heart Remus has, he automatically grasps Lily so they don't topple over. She gives him a quick peck on the cheek, but long enough for James to know what happened. Alice hesitantly pulled out her wand and muttered a curse towards James to express his emotions without control, and Marlene stood casually in front, blocking any cheesy movements from Alice.

Lily then let go of the shocked and frozen Remus and replied loudly, "It was fine. Thanks for asking, Remus. I knew you were the only one who truly cared." She pivoted on her left foot and swished her wavy red hair with her hand. This action, of course, was definitely unlike Lily Evans, however, the charm Alice had casted required her to act unusually dramatic. "Let's go girls!"

The three of them giggled and opened the door to Flourish and Blotts to walk inside, but not before Lily turned back to see James's expression. She knew it was gonna be good, but for the first time in probably her whole life- she was wrong. His reaction was not expected.

Lily saw Remus on the concrete floor with a trickle of blood from a bruised nose bridge, and James's eyes glinting fiercely. She let out a yelp and ran to Remus, Alice and Marlene close behind. Recalling what she remembered from Charms class she quickly cast a healing spell. Thankfully the injury wasn't major. Marlene ran to help Sirius hold James back from throwing another punch, while Alice stood there gaping at the unexpected scene, rubbing her face as though indicating James's reaction wasn't supposed to be this major.

Peter stumbled forward to help Remus up and take him home. Everyone stood there silently staring at James. He had tears welling up in his eyes as he looked from his monstrous hands to the floor where a few speckles of Remus's injury remain. He then stared into Lily's eyes with hurt and disappointment as he searched for a reason for why she did this to him. He'd figured they had cursed him with one of the over-emotional charms from fifth year. When he gave up, his face went blank and not one single expression could be read.

Alice spoke lowly under her breath directed at Lily, "You know he really cares that much for you to do that to one of his best friends. I never saw how immature and selfish you could be. I'm sorry, but I don't feel comfortable with hanging around someone who is capable of creating such damage," she stared down to the floor, eyes watering, "Goodbye, Lily." Alice finished and rushed out of the scene and Lily felt horrid inside. She always knew Alice was becoming more distant by the day when Frank entered her life but never expected them to break apart; Marlene, however, wasn't expected to give up their friendship like this either. Sirius gently shoved a dramatically sobbing Marlene off his arm and she bored her distressed look into Lily while slowly shaking her head, and fled after Alice. Sirius was left to awkwardly waddle away from the apparent tension in his view, not wanting to interact with his best friend or Lily at this point.

James stood there gazing straight in front of him at nothing in particular, then silently walked away, leaving Lily feeling more alone in the world than she had ever felt before.

Well that was that! The intro is now set and the next updates will have some interesting scenes in them so make sure to come back and check on it. Until next weekend!


	2. Chapters 3&4

I'm back, and earlier than expected! I wanted to give you all some more of the actual plot to go with the first two chapters, and I really couldn't wait until next week. I made the chapters a bit longer as people have previously requested, but not too long as to slow down the story itself. Some more Jily "action" if you'd call it will happen in the next few chapters, but it'll still be kept T-rated… for now...

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 **Chapter 3: Train Ride**

Lily shuffled with uncertain and timid steps all the way to the Heads' compartment of the train. Smoothing down her hair and robes, she unlatched the door, thinking " _It better not be a Slytherin"_. Every emotion comes flooding into her as she sees the boy sitting with his head against the window, gazing outside with the same blank look on his face she saw not even a few days ago.

James Potter- Head Boy. She couldn't believe her eyes when she saw the pin roughly planted on his rumpled robes. She stood there unsure of what to do, until he turned his head ever so slightly to simply look at her with yet another expressionless face. Before he turned back towards the window, she caught a faint glimpse of his features. His hair was unkempt and there were swollen red bags under his eyes that showed no glimmer of life or that mischievous glint he usually had. Still standing at the entrance of the doorway, she made up her mind. Slowly, but with confidence, she walked over to his seat, and sat next to him so their arms and thighs were touching. Lily took a sharp intake of breath as he froze. After a few moments passed, she made her next move. Lily gently placed her hand on his shoulder, not to be surprised by him flinching away.

"Potter, I didn't mean that for real, it was just a joke…"

"A joke? I'm so sorry, I didn't catch the part where you said that. So kissing Remus _and_ casting a charm on me to go abnormally mad was supposed to be a joke," he coolly stated.

About to reprimand him for thinking it was a kiss, she thought against it. She tried to put her hand on his thigh but was startled when he suddenly got up and moved to the seat across her, and yet again stared out the window with a blank face. Grimacing, Lily curled up into a small ball on the empty seat and fell into an uncomfortable sleep. She soon found herself in a nightmare of her friends being hurt by James Potter, and started pleading him not to hurt Alice and Marlene.

"Please James, please don't hurt them. I beg you…" she quietly whispered as her eyebrows slightly furrowed in her sleep. "Please stop...please!" she was murmuring.

In the compartment, James could see Lily moving around in her sleep slightly saying something, so when curiosity took over, he kneeled down right in front of her seat and listened. He shuddered, thinking that she thought of him in this way and knew that he had to alter the view she had of him. A few moments later Lily tumbled over into James's lap and wrapped her arms around him unconsciously, unknowing it was him, and pleaded, "Please help me, please."

James was heartbroken that Lily had nightmares about him, and he knew he had to get things resolved… But for now he let her lay asleep on his lap, soothing her by making circles on her palm and gently playing with her hair. While James was on the ground with her, he noticed how she smelled like fresh strawberries; the scent matched with her silky, vibrant red hair. As he soaked this moment in, he pictured her emerald green eyes intertwining with his hazel brown ones. Soon, he too fell soundly asleep.

After about twenty minutes of dazed sleep, Lily woke up from her nightmare to find a warm body holding her protectively. She felt genuinely thankful to whoever was sitting there with her like this. _Wait_ , she thought. One hand was gently holding hers, and they other was… stuck in her hair? Taking a deep breath, a strong scent of masculine cologne and woods made its way to her hazy mind. _It was a BOY?!_ she suddenly realized. Whoever it was, had to be sleeping, as he made no movement whatsoever. _Who is it?_ she thought. Then everything clicked into place.

 _OH NO!_ Her mind screamed when she realized the boy grasping her for dear life was the same boy who was in the compartment when she fell asleep. It was none other than JAMES POTTER!

Lily silently cursed under her breath as she squirmed under his strong hold and could not escape. She lay on the floor of the Heads' compartment helpless and unable to move. Trying to make time's worth, Lily's mind soon drifted off to what might have happened for them to have ended up like this. Her first theory was that he tried to wake her up when they got to Hogwarts and she was too heavy and knocked him down. She soon took that back since they were still on the train and it seemed like he was holding her for some reason. Lily then thought back to the nightmare she woke from. Had she sleepwalked? Unfortunately, the previous nightmare flooded back into her thoughts, but she remembered holding on to someone for protection. Maybe since James was the only one there, she fell onto him. _Hopefully Potter isn't mad at me anymore_. By the means of their position, it didn't seem likely he would still hold a grudge. However, she couldn't get ahead of herself, no, not until the figure sprawled underneath her began to move.

She leaned into his muscular body and pretended to be asleep. First, James groaned and lightly stretched underneath her. He then continued making comforting circles on her hand, while gently stroking her hair. Lily sighed and nuzzled her face in the crook of his neck. He stiffened a bit, but relaxed when she didn't move, and her breathing patterns were faint and slow. Everything in Lily's mind was yelling at her, _Are you CRAZY?! He's been your all time enemy ever since your first day of Hogwarts, yet here you are cuddling with him! Get off! Why aren't you MOVING? Lily! Wake up? What's WRONG with you?! Are you even listening?_

Oh, she was listening all right, but her body had a mind of it's own. She slowly fluttered her eyes open and gazed deeply into James's. The train came to a complete stop as liquid hazel met emerald green. He leaned in where their faces were almost touching but the door swung open to reveal a drowsy Sirius Black.

"Gotta go, train-" he trailed off as puzzles clicked together in his mind, and Sirius's eyes widened at the scene in front of him.

Lily blushed the hardest she ever has, where her face was nearly the color of her hair. Clearly embarrassed, she shoved her face into James's robes attempting to hide. As for James… let's just say, if looks could kill, Sirius Black would no doubt be a bloody mess.

Padfoot cleared his throat, smirking. "I'll leave you two to it," he said, shutting the compartment door.

The unfortunate encounter seemed to clear Lily's mind enough for her to jerk her head and stand up, unruffling her robes, and straightening her Head Girl badge. When she was satisfied enough, Lily grabbed her belongings ready to head out the door. James still hadn't moved, for he was in lust at the moment.

His trance was soon broken at the charming tone of the love of his life, "Potter? You okay?" Lily looked concerned.

The glaze in his eyes soon faded and he nodded, straightening his items. Lily was almost out of sight, when she hesitated and turned back, "Potter?"

"Hmm?" came a faint reply.

"I need to tell you- I'm really sorry. You need to believe me-" she sounded desperate. Too desperate in fact.

In two long strides, James was right in front of her. Their cheeks were touching, and his whisper tickled her ear, "I could never hold a grudge against you, Lily Evans."

As she walked to the carriage, Lily was floating. No one has ever made her felt this way. Not Remus, not Severus. No. Only James Potter could do this to her. _Why the Potterhead?_ she cried. Lily's mind and thoughts argued the whole way to Hogwarts. It was an internal battle for Lily, between her heart and her mind, and the one that would win is the one that she feeds. She was in war with herself- all because of James Potter.

 **Chapter 4: War Ceased**

As the carriage rides came to an end, and the anxious first years loaded onto the boats, Lily and all the other previous students were bracing themselves for the Marauders' "annual" first day back prank.

James and the rest of the Marauders had planned this prank on the train ride home last year (tradition of course), and each year would be better! _It's gonna be a while for the newbies to get here_ , Lily thought, slumping down the wall until her bum hit the marble tiles. In the relaxed position, Lily allowed her mind to be carried off by James Potter.

 _NOT AGAIN LILY! Come on! You can stop this. You're Lily Evans, Head Girl! MERLIN'S BEARD you cannot think of Potter in this way. He's POTTER for goodness sake!_

This time, there was no James around to distract her, so she listened. Her mind had a point- she couldn't think of Potter like this, but the problem was, who else was there to think about in this way? Even though she was Lily Evans _and_ the Head Girl, she had to admit, she was a bit addicted to the feeling.

 _Lily, we all know the obvious- this "feeling" you get is the first stage of beginning a crush…_ That's when she stopped. Lily couldn't believe it. Lily Evans having a c-cr-crush on Potterpoop. NO! NEVER! DEFINITELY NOT POSSIBLE. She gave up and shut everything off. Lily cringed at the thought of her maybe actually beginning to l-li-like him. _There's another nightmare,_ she sighed.

However, she knew she had to continue, or this mind/heart war would never end and would haunt her forever. She couldn't live with that, so Lily decided to put an end to this by feeding the most logical solution- Forget what happened on the train and treat Potter the way you always have.

She repeated that statement over and over in silence until her brain got tired, but something deep down told her it was wrong to ignore everything.

 _Lily Evans. WAKE UP! It's not going to work if you keep doubting yourself! You of ALL people can not hesitate to do what you think should be done. You are Lily Evans, Head Girl, person who despises Potter the MOST! And now you're debating if you should start liking him o-_

 _OKAY! I understand now! It disgusts me to think I might actually l-li-like him. Now I just need to forget…_

 _You know you can't forget this! You have to learn to HATE it most of all so it becomes easier to push away!_

 _SHH! I understand now. I HATE JAMES POTTER! HE DID THIS TO ME! WHAT HAPPENED ON THE TRAIN WAS ALL PROBABLY JUST PART OF A BET!_

 _That's it girl! You got it! Now whenever you see him, just think these thoughts._

 _Got it!_

Finally satisfied, Lily starts to stand up, wobbling a bit because of the cramps in her hamstrings and thigh muscles. A hand grasps her waist firmly to keep her from falling, and she pushes it away.

"I'm not a little girl, thank you very much. I can handle ANYTHING and EVERYTHING by myself and I don't need YOU of all people," she retorted sarcastically and stalked off fuming, leaving behind a speechless and befuddled James Potter.

After the Sorting Hat ceremony and Dumbledore's speech which ended with the announcement of the new Heads, the metal caps of the large silver platters flew off to reveal the meal. The problem was: there were no meals present! The trays were completely empty. The only sounds in the room were the murmurs and gasps from all the children and the Marauders happily chewing on drumsticks, corn, potatoes, and almost anything else you could imagine.

"Go on everyone!" Black stifled a grin. "How come no one's eating?"

"Oi Moony, you think the girls are all too flabbergasted to move?" Pettigrew questioned innocently.

"Yeah, I betcha we're even sexy when we eat!" Potter chortled.

The Marauders kept throwing back idiotic comments at one another until Lily had enough when a Hufflepuff first year's belly grumbled loudly and echoed in the almost silent room. Everyone began to laugh, as the first year ducked under the table.

James eyed Lily as she glanced at the professors. Dumbledore shushed the other professors and looked at Lily expectantly. _Merlin's beard! They want her to take care of this!_ James smirked. _This should be good._

"ENOUGH", Lily's harsh tone rung out in the now pin drop silent Great Hall. James was impressed. It's not everyday you get to hear a girl's "man voice", and he certainly hadn't expected this from Evans.

"Now, I expect the food back on the plates when I get to one." Her eyes were a stormy emerald green like a mushy swamp tornado raging inside. "Five!" she began.

The Marauders looked at each other innocently when James pulled out a tin box with a large, captivating bright red button that illuminated in the dim hall.

"Four!"

Sirius, who was as fast as a hawk, swooped over the table, snatching it from James's palm and ran like the wind to Lily before James could disagree.

When Sirius reached Lily, breathless, he handed the button to her. "It matches your hair color… and it makes the food appear back on the platter," he quickly added.

Not really thinking, and wanting to get this over with, she pushed the button.

Yes, the food did appear back on the table, but no one was paying attention to that. The only thing capturing any attention in any part of the Great Hall was Lily Evans standing on her part of the Gryffindor bench with nothing on but her red bra and lacy red knickers.

James Potter was stunned. Truly stunned at the angel Merlin has sent to him. She looked beautiful… but absolutely the most angriest and embarrassed he had ever saw her in six years. He suddenly realized how bad this could get for not only the current situation but whatever was now left of their relationship. James couldn't really even call them friends anymore, especially because of this. Whoever planned it would pay for what they've done, and he'd make sure of that.

Only the Gryffindors got a chance to loom over the sight before Marlene and Alice undid their robes and covered the shocked Head Girl. As soon as all three of them rushed out of sight, laughter began from the ones who had seen Lily.

An enraged Dumbledore and flushed McGonagall hurried from their seats. McGonagall took off after the girls and Dumbledore took his stand at the front, wildly clinking at his goblet, "ENOUGH! I SAID ENOOOUUUGH!"

The Marauders cursed loudly. _We're gonna get it!_ James thought worriedly as they all facepalmed. That was NOT supposed to happen.

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Well that certainly didn't end well, but it's progress! Make sure to send reviews with critiques and definitely compliments, which are highly welcomed. If there are any questions, feel free to ask too. Until next week (and hopefully actually next week this time)!


	3. Chapter 5

It's finally next week, and here's a new chapter! I only posted one this time because it's so much longer than any other I've written and has a bunch going on. In my opinion, this is my absolute favorite chapter so far, and it'll hopefully be for you too!

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 **Chapter 5: First Night**

As Lily ran out of the great hall in fury and tears, Marlene and Alice rushed after her. They could see her just around the corner flat out sobbing about the fact that everyone had just seen the Head Girl in nothing but her bloody undergarments. Professor McGonagall arrived moments later, out of breath. She told Alice and Marlene that they were amazing friends to quickly cover up Lily, but Lily knew they only did that since it's what was expected from them. _Anyone would've done what they did in that circumstance, and they only bothered because it would look bad on their part if they hadn't,_ Lily convinced herself. After all, they were the closest to her. She didn't have her best friends anymore, not after they left her utterly alone in Diagon Alley. Lily shuddered at the memory of the incident. Thankfully, they both were abruptly dismissed to go to their dorm room. As for Lily, Professor McGonagall had a chat with her about the whole event, punishments for those responsible, and a possibility to obliviate the scene to those who saw.

After their small chat, Professor allowed her to wipe up her tears in the lavatory. She rushed off, fortunate no one was there in the halls to see her. When she finished cleaning herself up, she wondered why the Marauders, especially James would even do that to her.

 _See?! I TOLD you it was a bet! But you didn't listen!_ she told herself.

 _Now I know. And they all will pay for what they have done. Especially Potter._ She trudged up to the painting of the Fat Lady but stopped abruptly and remembered about the Heads' dorm. She groaned internally and after a tedious journey, found her way to the old couple and recited the password " _Caput Draconis"._ When Lily stepped in, she stood there in awe, forgetting about her worries and gazing out at the warm and comfy looking sofa and armchairs. The common room was extravagantly decorated in Gryffindor colors! There was a stuffed, antique bookshelf and two mahogany wooden desks, along with elegant arched glass windows. On each side, there were two short staircases which presumably lead to the two Head rooms. As Lily entered her's she stood ogling at the sight, speechless. There was a queen-sized bed with fluffy maroon and gold covers, elegant drapes hanging from the bed posts, and polished wooden floors along with a dresser and closet. Lily's heart pounded as she peeked into the huge and extravagant bathroom, but was then brought out of her reverie by the other door across which lead to Potter's room she realized bitterly.

Moments later, an owl startled her by pecking at her window. She recalled this to be Dumbledore's. Slowly, Lily unwrapped the letter as she gently stroked the hooting owl with three fingers. Sitting on her bed, she read the scribbled words on the tea-stained piece of parchment:

 _Ms. Evans,_

 _I would like to apologize greatly for this sort of behavior. You can be well assured it has been taken care of. Professor Slughorn has obliviated the students who have any knowledge of the incident, except for Black, Lupin, and Pettigrew of course. We have them in for questioning and have assigned detention to Mr. Lupin, Black, and Pettigrew, however we believe Mr. Potter is an exception._

 _I understand this must be an extremely difficult for you, but please take notice that not one of the students ever attending Hogwarts under my supervision have gotten away with acts such as this. It will be complicated to tell you what Mr. Potter has conveyed to us professors, therefore it is required for there to be a meeting between the two of you in the Heads Dormitory._

 _If you would like to know, Mr. Pettigrew and Lupin have received a month's worth detention, however we have Mr. Black paying double the price. You may add on to these as well as creating a suitable punishment for Mr. Potter. I ask that by tomorrow evening, you have the requirements complete. Again, I sincerely apologize for everything._

 _Warm Regards,_

 _Professor Dumbledore_

Lily didn't know what to think. The professors really did take this into a major account. She decided to let Potter know about tonight's meeting. However, when she thought of it, what could she really write? After some thought, Lily decided to make it short and simple. He would have a LOT of explaining to do anyway. Grabbing a quill, she sat at her desk to write:

 _Potter,_

 _Meeting in the Heads' Dorm ASAP. Be here now. You have a lot of explaining._

 _~ L.E._

Tying the rolled up paper to the leg of Dumbledore's owl, she let it go. Unknowingly, Lily walked into the bathroom again to relish in the bright white light it produced. Her eyes gazed over the pearly bathtub and glossy twin sinks. She looked up into the mirror only to find a disheveled being staring at her. She gasped, her hands involuntarily covering her mouth in shock, then frantically reaching over her head to brush through her tangled hair. After washing her face and changing into concealing clothes that included an oversized maroon sweater and black leggings, Lily waited patiently on the velvety couch. She twisted her fingers through her hair with anticipation, recalling the bedraggled girl in the mirror as the minute hand on the clock ticked away.

He sat in Dumbledore's office sighing in frustration with his hands in his hair. How could his best mates do this to him? What happened to Lily? Where is she now? Will he lose his Head position? So many thoughts tumbled through his head like a stampede, James didn't hear the owl rush in through the window. Something tapped his shoulder, making him jump in utter surprise. Across from him, Professor Dumbledore chuckled lightly, grabbing the attached letter from its foot after his owl flew over to him. James eyed the Head Master skim through the parchment, his eyebrows raised.

Dumbledore looked up and handed the letter to James, "For you."

James grabbed the paper and glared at it. His face hardened as he read the signature. "I have to go, ASAP," he mimicked a high-pitched voice.

The Head Master grinned, shaking his head knowingly as the boy he knew so well stormed out through the door.

As James strided through the long halls and nearly ran into the old couples' painting, he hoped that Lily wouldn't be furious with him. It didn't really matter cause he was ABSOLUTELY furious. _But why?_ It didn't make any sort of sense that he was mad with Lily, in fact, he should be completely fearful of what she may do to him once he stepped into the Head's dorm. James figured he was agitated with his best mates and what happened. Shrugging it off, he quickly said the password and walked straight into the common room. Out of shock, Lily stood up and almost fell over, but before she could say anything, James had the sudden urge to apologize and explain everything.

"Lily! I know this must be really hard for you, but I swear on Merlin's Beard that I had nothing to do with it! You know how I had and maybe still have a MAJOR crush on you and I wouldn't do anything to blast it all. I swear, Lil, you gotta believe me, everything that happened- no one knows now. Even Sirius, Remus, and Peter have been obliviated. The only reason I remember is because I need to apologize to you, and here I am doing it right now. Seriously Lily, I swear I'm so bloody sorry, and I really dunno how to make it up to you! Just tell me anything, and I'll do it. Promise! Just please don't be mad at me. The thing on the train…" he paused, gasping and looked up. The fire flickered across her face as she held a grim expression, gesturing him to continue. "The thing on the train…" he picked up, "The thing-"

"Yes I get it, the thing on the train. FINISH UP!"

"Well, the… well yeah, that. I think you deserve an explanation. Sirius hasn't been obliviated of that, well, cause no one knew about it… well, nevermind. What happened was that you were sleep talking, and I was… well you know a bit…," James carried on slowly, picking his words carefully. " I was curious. So, I leaned closer and you fell on me. You said something about me hurting you. Lily... no matter how furious I was about what you did, I can't hold a grudge on you. It's not even mentally possible! I was really let down that you had nightmares about me, and I NEED to fix it. It's really not even an option for me. So there I was and I held you cause… well, you were scared, so yeah. Then you woke up… and you know the rest. But first I have to know why you thought of me that way, Merlin Lily, I have so many questions-" James couldn't speak anymore due to the warmth that spread throughout his lips. He glanced up looking directly into Lily's eyes, watching her finger clamp his mouth shut.

"Do you _ever_ shut up?" she whispered, scowling at him. Lily stepped closer and studied his expression, "I think I understand most of what you said," she started, keeping her finger in place, " and the nightmare was just cause, well… I was a bit scared of you since you didn't, well you had that face." She grimaced slightly, "It wasn't even a face! You… you… you were like dead! Don't EVER do that to me EVER again!," Lily scolded. "I'm sorry."

James noticed how close they were, and how even though Lily seemed finished with her speech, she didn't move at all. He reached out to twirl a few strands of fiery red hair hanging loosely on her robes. She froze when he moved and took her finger off, blushing madly. He didn't know why or how or anything, but it just seemed like the right time. Closing his eyes, James slowly leaned in. Lily yelped in pure shock and took off in a flurry of red nothingness.

As Lily stormed up to her dorm she decided to take a warm relaxing bath to think over everything but also wanting to drown herself in embarrassment. Lily thought about all her emotions while the soft fresh smell of lavender filled the bathroom. She couldn't possibly have feelings for that Potter bloke. _No never ever ever in a million years_! she thought, but she knew she needed more convincing, so she thought of all the bad things Potter had done to her in the past years. Lily thought back to when he tried to put a charm on her that said ' _potter's girl'_ but backfired so she had green hair for a week! Thinking about all of this made her laugh and maybe it wasn't so bad- _NO Lily Evans NO! You cannot do this to yourself! You are a smart independent young lady!_ she thought to herself with a stern voice. She then decided to completely forget about the whole almost-kissing incident and save herself some dignity or whatever was left of it.

The door creaked open and James walked in on her in the bath, the curtains covering any view of her figure submerged in the tub. In only his boxers, he washed his face splattering water everywhere.

 _OH BLOODY HELL! Wait, he doesn't see me. Thank Merlin! WOAH! Those muscles from quidditch..._ she stared in awe over the sight of him. _NO, Lily! He is a bad person don't you dare lose it for outside appearances!_ She was fighting herself to take another peek until her eyes flickered up to see James washing the soap off his face. _Great he's almost done. When he turns around, he'll definitely see me! I've gotta get out of here… now!_ She sprinted into her room which was freezing her unclothed body and locked the door. After catching her breath, Lily grabbed any source of protection and slipped into a plain maroon v-neck with a gold emblem and some matching fuzzy pants. She soon decided it was too hot to wear fuzzy PJs just yet so she changed into some black comfy shorts. A few moments later James was knocking on her door.

"Lily?"

"What?" Lily croaked. _Does he know? OH MERLIN'S BEARD DID HE SEE ANYTHING?_

The door creaked open a little.

"I just wanted to let you know that I brought some food from the kitchens for us to eat… it's in the common room..." James said a bit unsure on her reaction.

"Thanks Potter, " she said genuinely thankful and relieved, for she had completely forgotten about dinner.

As they walked down the small flight of stairs Lily couldn't help but notice that James was wearing a pair of fuzzy pants with snitches on them! She giggled at the sight.

"What's so funny?" James asked.

"Potter your- pants they- have-snitches on them!" Lily said in between laughs.

"Oh yeah my mum had seen them in Paris on a mission and thought I would really like them," James proudly admitted while grinning.

Lily asked what his parents did and told him what her parents did in the muggle world as they ate dinner. They got into a great conversation about what they wanted to do after Hogwarts although Lily became sad at the thought of it being the last year at Hogwarts. She thought of all the memories she had and started tearing up a little bit at the thought while James went to get some hot chocolate. When James came back he saw Lily with tear-glazed eyes which made him want to strangle the person who hurt her. When she explained why she was crying, he also became sad at the thought, and pulled Lily in a tight embrace as they sat in front of the cozy fire drinking hot chocolate and telling each other about all the memories they had throughout the years.

Lily was enjoying their bonding at for the moment ignoring her mind and listening to her heart. About an hour or so later, they knew they had to go to bed after Lily refused to budge from her exhaustion; Lily was nearly passed out, and James didn't want her to sleep on the couch, so he picked her up and layed her down in bed, tucked her in, and gave her a goodnight peck on the forehead. But what he didn't know was that Lily was in fact awake but just really tired. Lily was feeling like she was walking on air from the moment he picked her up to when he gave that goodnight kiss. Since she was nearly asleep she didn't dwell on it.

The next morning Lily woke up pretty early due to the fact that it was her first day and she didn't want to be late, even though she usually doesn't like waking up. She went to the bathroom but before she got started she decided to wake James up. He was her responsibility now, without Remus to wake him and all. She opened his door and walked over to him, whispering for him to wake up. When that didn't work, Lily tried to tickle him with a piece of her hair, but only got James to move an arm around her and drag her onto his mattress right next to him. She was snuggled up against James's toned body and became flushed at their position. She struggled against him and tried to push her elbow into his chest. When he didn't move, she tucked her head under his chin and poked his underarm, attempting to be released from his muscular hold. Soon, he woke up and stared at her in his bed. Lily jumped up, her face a deep shade of crimson and stuttered, "Don't think any of this means anything, Potter".

As Lily walked to the Great Hall, not able to get a smile off her face because it was her first day back and she couldn't wait, James caught up with her and asked Lily a question that would never get old, "Lily do you want to go out with me?" She stopped in the middle of the hallway and slowly turned to meet his eyes. The way he asked her scared Lily, and his expression confirmed her assumption. James was being totally serious, unlike the previous thousands of times he'd asked. Of course he was also being serious before, but those times, he already knew he didn't have any sort of chance. This time, after everything they went through last night which seemed like enough of an apology, he had the guts to ask her with the feeling she could say yes. She couldn't look at him, she felt too guilty already.

"No," was all she could choke out while squeezing her eyes tightly shut. James couldn't see her face and took it as if she was done with the conversation- all he caught onto was a "no" and he walked away. He couldn't really stay, she wanted nothing to do with him anyway. Lily, at this point, had no idea what to do next. She was hurting so much on the inside because she knew she was supposed to say no but it didn't feel right, almost as if she didn't want to say no. Lily at this point had to clamp her mouth shut from screaming after him, "WAIT, COME BACK!" What would that do? It would make things so much worse- if he did come back, she would have nothing to say, and that would ruin them both. She didn't want to say no but she knew she could never say yes.

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That just hit me in the feels so hard. I'll be back next week to post and hopefully it'll make up for what I've done in this chapter! Leave reviews about this one because I know you have something, if not a lot to say!


	4. Chapter 6

I know what you all are thinking- **How could you ruin their relationship like that in the last chapter?!** Well, I'm sorry but things may or may not get a little worse in this chapter… but I'm not spoiling it, so you have to read and find out!

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 **Chapter 6: Hogsmeade**

As the first few weeks of September passed by and Hogsmeade weekend was rolling around the corner, the Marauders had been observed mysteriously whispering away in the hallways, Great Hall, and especially History of Magic class. Peter would run towards the rest of their gang with papers he had dropped trailing behind him, then Remus would automatically grab them, sit wherever they were holding their not-so-secret meeting and begin revising Peter's work from the previous night. Sirius and James would then rush up to Peter so he could relay the information and they would all skeptically split up as if they were going to meet back together somewhere else. Lily had noticed this after the first few days, as she was already capable of coming to conclusions quite quickly. When she began noticing Peter was bringing less and less to the trio awaiting him, Lily attempted to brace herself for another classic "Marauders" prank, but what happened turned out to be much worse…

As everyone went down to lunch on a bright fall morning, out of nowhere, the floating candles and skylight directly above them all began to dim slightly. Spectacularly tainted red, orange, yellow, and brown autumn leaves came together to form the words "Elizabeth Jones will you go out with me? -James". It was incredibly decorated with the extravagant Chinese lanterns that couldn't have been bought anywhere in the entire country, which explains the extraneous planning beforehand. James was the most popular person in their year, and every girl has pretty much had a crush on him at some point. From his toned body to him being Quidditch captain and an excellent player, along with his humor, fairly smart mind, and gorgeous features, Jones immediately said yes in a heartbeat! Elizabeth Jones was the most popular girl in their entire grade, which accounts for why it was her he'd asked, with long gorgeous blonde locks and coffee brown eyes. Her height was a little under James's shoulder so she was quite petite! Her style was extravagant, but she was OK in her classes and had been accused of cheating a lot.

As Lily saw Elizabeth run up to James for a hug and kiss, her stomach twisted and she was overflowed with many emotions. _You can't say anything- you basically said no to him already._ She silently pushed away her unfinished lunch and slipped out of the commotion to clear her thoughts. Lily decided the Library was a good start for her to breathe a little bit. The Library was her resting place, and also where she hung out with her friends- of course Alice and Marlene weren't the only ones; there was also Mary, Emily, Frank, Fabian, Gideon, and numerous others who were considered good friends, just not the best friends she'd recently lost. In fact, Lily was quite popular herself, but not the way Jones was. It didn't matter anyway. When Lily finally rested in a comfy arm chair, she looked out the window on the beautiful day that had formed gray clouds scattering the sky and a light drizzle sprinkling down onto Hogwarts grounds. _Why didn't James ever do something special like this to ask me out?_ She couldn't believe the fact that thought had even crossed her mind, and was abhorred for a moment, then realized it was bound to happen anyway. Once Lily put some thought into it, memories of all the different ways James had tried asking her out flooded through her mind. _I was being stupid and wouldn't notice the effort he had put._ She soon became envious at the thought of Jones and Potter sitting by the fireplace snuggling together. _No,_ she thought, _I'm not going to let this ruin me. I'm just going to have to make more of an impression if I want to be more like Jones!_ Regretting it had come down to this, but also feeling a bit thrilled at the risk she was about to take, Lily felt stronger than she had ever really imagined possible until she saw Jones and Potter dancing in the rain along with Sirius and Peter playing along (Remus was resting since his furry little problem happened a night ago). Seeing this made Lily more sure of her resolution and she strutted back to the Great Hall to grab a bite since she hadn't had much of a lunch.

As she walked down to the Great Hall she immediately saw what she dreaded- Jones was sitting in her seat! Even though it wasn't 'assigned' Lily had been sitting there since the start of the year with the same people around her, and now Jones was just gonna sit there? Lily didn't want to make a big scene or start any rumors so she decided to sit next to the Prewett brothers who were more than glad to have her as company.

The Marauders noticed Lily wasn't at lunch, once they took their seats and the excitement had died down, and when Elizabeth came, no one dared say that's Lily's seat even though everyone knew Lily sat there. James was a bit anxious but ruled out she must have work to finish up.

When Lily walked through the portrait door to the Heads' common room after she met with her friends for a study session in the library, she saw James head rested on Jones's lap while her finger traced up and down James face on the sofa. On _our_ sofa, Lily unconsciously added. _Wait what did I just say? Haha I just said that because that sofa is ours since it's in the Heads' Dorm and we're the Heads duh._ She then quickly decided to go up to her room with her shoes clanking lightly against the stone floors. Lily now had a slight hatred towards Jones and was so conflicted over everything, which lead her to decide to commence the makeover as a distraction to get her mind off of all the drama. She washed her face and did a few skin helping charms to make her hair and face flawless. All this "spoiling" made Lily feel really good about herself and she changed into a gorgeous outfit consisting of a dark green, fitting sweater and bright skinny jeans along with some high fashion rain boots since it was raining severely outside. By the time Lily was ready to leave her room, she was finished her assignments, her skin was glowing with unhidden freckles, and her hair looked vibrant and bouncy to the touch. She sprayed on a vanilla scented perfume and added a few dainty necklaces to her look, then headed out the door! When she came to the entrance some of the students had already left in the carriages including Jones and Potter who she saw were laughing with Sirius, Marlene, Frank, Alice, Remus, and Kathleen, another very good friend of Lily, but was out since a death in her family at start of term. Lily couldn't help but turning a fuming red. SHE should have been the one in that carriage, not Jones! Those were her friends! Appalled at her internal behavior, Lily tried to give herself a mini pep-talk. Y _es you are Lily Evans, Head Girl, and nobody can bring you down unless you let them!_ She found herself climbing onto the next carriage full of 7th year Hufflepuffs. She immediately recognized one of them, Amos Diggory; he was one of the most charming boys in the school, he was so sweet and nice! He had asked Lily out before, but James had ruined that for her with his stupid... _Wait!_ Lily thought as the facts dawned on her, _that's why I don't really have anyone else talking to me! It's all because of that horrible Potter!_ She was angry now, but had to rat him out later. Amos was asking her if she wanted to join him at Madam Rosmerta's! She said yes, thankful she wouldn't be alone. The Hufflepuffs all sat down in a booth but it was crowded like crazy in there, so the boys chose to wait while the girls went to shop around. Lily got to know three of the Hufflepuffs better and they weren't so bad, not compared to her actual friends, or so she thought. Walking through the shops and getting to know each other better Lily saw from the corner of her eye Potter "hand feeding" Jones cotton candy while she was giggling. She felt sick to her stomach as she saw her other friends talking and laughing, surrounding the new couple.

As the Hufflepuff girls and Lily made there way back, they saw Madam Rosmerta placing their butterbeers on the table. _Perfect timing_ Lily thought as she started chatting away with the Hufflepuff group and sipping her butterbeer, but what Lily didn't notice was the fact that the Marauders and her friends were sitting at the table next to there's looking at Lily and gaping at how beautiful she looked along with her so carefree attitude! As the sun set and music started, Amos asked Lily to dance, which she couldn't deny- not after everything he'd done for her. As they started dancing along to the music, James saw this and wondered why Lily was never like this when they were with her. But when his senses came back on and he realized Lily was dancing with another boy he got mad, but barely stopped himself for he was in a relationship. In spite of this, he did put his butterbeer glass down quite hard against the table, which caused some stares.

After all the students arrived back at Hogwarts, the Marauders were conflicted with how differently Lily was back at the pub. They all had a discussion in their dormitory about it, excluding Jones even though she was everywhere James was. They all wondered what went wrong, thinking, _Maybe it was the button incident?_ James agreed with that thought, but one thing for sure was he wanted his Lils back! As they all tried to figure out why, James knew one thing- he just had to ask Lily himself.

After their whole little meeting was done, James was in the Heads' Dorm thinking over what he should say to Lily. Meanwhile, Lily had finished showering and was in her bedroom writing a letter when James walked in.

He just started talking not even noticing what Lily was doing and when he was done bombarding Lily with questions over Hogsmeade, he stopped in shock over how he messed up again. Although James didn't know where this would go, he stuck to his plan and started asking Lily why she was acting different at Hogsmeade with that Diggory boy.

Lily scoffed, "I don't know what's gotten into you Potter. I have no idea what you're talking about."

He sensed the scrutiny from her piercing eyes coming off in waves as she studied him. Unsure if she truly meant what she said, he tried, "Lily, you know exactly what I'm talking about." It was almost a low growl.

She tensed and anger flew from her words, "SOD OFF POTTER! For the record I have other friends that I'm allowed to hang out with!" Her graciously thin thighs strained when she got up and strode to the doorway. James didn't have to think twice before fleeing from the ghastly red-head before him.

Walking away, he thought to himself, _She knew what I was talking about._ Confusion raided his brain and distracted him from his surroundings. Looking down and walking fast, James ran into someone with their arms crossed tightly over their chest. He gazed up, coming to his senses and was startled by a furious Elizabeth Jones.

"Hey Jonesss," he half-heartedly slurred, leaning in to kiss her forehead. He knew he had to act as clingy toward her and she did to him or else things will start to get fishy. _Or maybe they already have…_

Suddenly, Jones took a step back and glared at him, "Where did you come from?"

"I was just talking with L-" he stopped himself and realized the situation.

"Why is everything Lily? I'M your girlfriend, not her. If things are gonna work between us, you shouldn't keep up with the daily check-ups." Her tone softened as she slyly added, "Or maybe it'll work better if you don't see her at all…"

"Oh come on Liz! She's a head, we have dorms next to each other!." By the look she was giving him, he noticed the only way she wouldn't break up with him is if he obeyed.

A sharp pain travelled through his neck and his left shoulder got heavy. A furry owl he figured to be Lily's cooed into his ear. "Oh for the love of Merlin! Please be the last time!"

Elizabeth's scorching eyes travelled from him to the creature nuzzling itself into his ruffled hair. She squinted and grasped the owl's leg violently to untangle the tied letter. James yelped and grabbed Lily's owl protectively. It bit him and flew away out the window. Cursing under his breath, he stripped from his robes and tightly tied them around his wound to stop the bleeding before he would rush off to Madam Pomfrey. Before James could make another move, Elizabeth turned on him, her eyes filled with agony. She pushed him against the wall and shoved the letter in his face. It was at that unfortunate moment Lily walked in on them in what could be a very misleading position.

"Ja-Potter! What have you been doing? My owl came back with ruffled feathers and a bloody beak but-" she halted in her steps staring at James against the wall, who was very, very close to Elizabeth, pinning him down. Lily's mouth opened, but nothing came out, and before James could explain, Jones kissed him fully on the mouth for what seemed like eternity. He finally found the breath to push her away and swivel around, but Lily was nowhere in sight.

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Yikes that definitely caused some tension between all of them. Let me know what you all think about Elizabeth Jones! Leave reviews and make sure to follow and favorite the story so you know the next time I post!


	5. Chapter 7

Back at it again this week! Thank you guys for the reviews and I'd definitely like to hear more of your thoughts on the story. Anyway, I added a preview of the last scene from Chapter 6 because it's really important to the starting of this chapter. This one has a bunch going on as well, so get your feels prepared, otherwise tuck them far away from this part!

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"Ja-Potter! What have you been doing? My owl came back with ruffled feathers and a bloody beak but-" she halted in her steps staring at James against the wall, who was very, very close to Elizabeth, pinning him down. Lily's mouth opened, but nothing came out, and before James could explain, Jones kissed him fully on the mouth for what seemed like eternity. He finally found the breath to push her away and swivel around, but Lily was nowhere in sight.

 **Chapter 7: Revenge is Sweet**

Lily woke up to a dreadful start the next morning. She glanced at her alarm clock in a hurry. It was covered in dust unlike her other belongings since she always woke up at the same time each morning and never had the need to change it after the time was set. The first two classes had already passed, and if she didn't hurry, she would definitely be late for her third class- Defense. Lily's head was a stone carried by an ant. She sagged back down in her bed, not giving a care in the world. This was most utterly not like her, but Lily had her reasons. As her head lugged back against the welcoming pillow, she realized her face was moist and the pillow still damp from last night. Ugh. Speaking of last night…

 _Lily hurriedly ran away from the scene. It hurt Lily that she was actually reacting to James's relationship with Jones and felt weak at the fact that it bothered her. This isn't the Lily she was, not the one she had planned to be, but it's the Lily that she is now. She didn't know where to or what exactly was going on, but she ran. Ran like the world was going to end; she felt numb watching Potter and Jones practically swallowing each other's heads in the Heads Dorm. Ran like she was dying of sheer horror- not at the fact James and Jones had a snog fest in their dorm but because she was bothered by it. Then she was pushed over. Well, to be honest it was sort of accidental. A large figure with swampy hair looked down at her._ _ **OH MERLIN'S BEARD! COULD THINGS POSSIBLY GET ANY WORSE?!**_ _she almost cried out loud. Gazing down at her was none other than Sirius Black._

" _Sod off, you git!" she mercilessly screeched into his eardrum._

 _He stood stricken and befuddled at her bizarre outburst only to yell after her, " Wait! Lily please come back! What's wrong?What did I do this time?!"_

 _Sirius Black was one you would called attached, especially to his closest friends. It was because of the torture he had to endure at the Black Manor back when he lived with his family. Now he stays with the Potters, and everything is much better, but the way Lily ran away from him opened up the gash that had taken years to heal and he suddenly remembered where he recalled the expression on her face- it's the same one he had the night he fled from his family. Lily had become a wonderful friend to the Marauders, definitely not including James, of the past few years. Sirius and Lily were exceptionally close and he was torn from the inside that she seemed to be going through something similar to what he had._

 _Sirius frantically looked around for her, but she was already gone. Past Alice and Frank in the library having a tutoring session, which really was just another of their snogging fests, past a broom cabinet seeming to consist of the fashionably new and improved Marlene McKinnon who had visited Italy over winter break, and some random bloke strolling in the halls. She still couldn't believe she had lost those dearest to her so quickly._ _ **IT'S ONLY THE BEGINNING! IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE FOR ME, JUST THROW IT DOWN! OH MERLIN, THIS IS NOT HOW I WANTED MY LAST YEAR TO GO!**_ _She broke down into a wilting flower of sobs, feeling like one of those replaceable petals. Her body was spasmodically shaking from trying to keep the sobs in, but she couldn't; she needed to break free. Lily yelled_ muffliato _and trembled wildly to her heart's content, allowing herself to swallow in herself in pity._

 _It was at that moment her angel had come to take her to heaven. Amos Diggory knelt beside her, rubbing soothingly on her back. Lily gasped, but when she realized it was Diggory, she fell into his arms, not more regretful than she could already be from letting her emotions get the best of her, as tears streamed from her eyes as she fell to the ground. Then she smirked. She smirked because Potterboy was a player, smirked because she had an angel to use, smirked because she had an idea. An idea that would have ran Lucius Malfoy for his money..._

Coming back to her senses, Lily smiled. No, wait, smirked. Last night gave her that one sane idea that would save her dignity. Lily was going on a date today. A date with Amos Diggory. A date with Amos Diggory to save her dignity. Lily liked how that sounded, almost like it was meant to be. Today was their day at the quidditch pitch, and Lily knew that Potter bloke was going out somewhere with Jones due to their little "show" last night. _NO! I'm not going to let him ruin today! Not even once._ She optimistically decided to put on a little show for her dear Amos herself. With some tweaks of magic, Lily Evans was going to look flawless for her first date! But the thought of having to attend her classes before that night crushed the rest of her optimism until she remembered the Care of Magical Creatures outing they had today. It brought a cheesy grin on her face which subdued when she realized how many different emotions she had just experienced all in one morning. It didn't matter though- it's just the teenage hormones getting to her.

By the time Lily got ready and visited the kitchen to grab some breakfast some house elves had prepared for her, there were about seven minutes left of Defense Against the Dark Arts, and it would be inexcusable to enter the classroom at this time. She waited in the corridors and decided to venture off to catch students skipping class- she was Head Girl after all. Once Lily saw a barrage of heads and robes file out of rooms, she began to look for anyone familiar. Amos Diggory caught her eye and she rushed over to him.

"Lily! Nice to see you actually up and about this morning," Amos kindly greeted her, bringing a smile to Lily's face already flushed face.

"Amos! That's no way to speak to Head Girl and to please your curiousity, I've been up all morning… I just… um chose not to attend classes? Yea that's it." From a mile away, anyone could've felt the doubt resonating off of Lily.

"Sure, of course you willingly skipped class. The day Lily Evans chooses to skip class will be the day I decide snog Elizabeth Jones!" Diggory playfully bantered back after he cringed.

Lily skidded to a halt and glared at him accusingly, "WHAT did you just say?" Amos was taken aback by her almost-growl. He assumed she was just playing jealous because he and Lily had a date planned tonight, but her expression gave off no vibes of "playing around". It seemed more like a "mention that name again and you won't live to see another second of your pitiful life".

It was an awkward walk, but Amos didn't regret a single minute, and they waved goodbye when he dropped her off to Care of Magical Creatures.

After coming back from her classes that day, Lily ruffled through her magically-expanded closet two hours before they were supposed to meet. James's owl frustratedly pecked her window, almost making a small crack. She banged on the other side attempting to drive it away. Unsuccessful, she closed the curtains, removing all distractions. She pulled out simple jeggings from Marlene last year, and her favorite black sweater that hung at her shoulders. With a few flicks of her wand, Lily had fashionable rips in her jeans now. It reminded her of the rips in her current relationship with Marlene. Lily grabbed the side of her closet door frame and closed her eyes. Nothing can bring her down tonight.

Strolling over to the bathroom, the pecking started again. She rolled her eyes and shut the door behind her. Her mum had gotten the letter about her first date, and sent an extremely long one back with certain rules to follow. She also received a petite makeup bag with basic things that were included in the letter. She dug through the kit and pulled out lipstick and blush that matched her hair, some foundation, powder, eyeliner, and of course, mascara. Alice had gotten her black strapped high heels for her birthday last year, which she pulled out to use today. After Lily freshened up, she looked like a veela as she walked down the hallway confidently. Heads turned her way; they all ogled at the new Lily Evans.

Amos Diggory's mouth fell open, spilling his dinner back onto his plate, then he literally flew toward her, knocking the other Hufflepuffs down with shouts of protests. Lily giggled, flattered, as he put a protective arm around her waist, strolling out to the Three Broomsticks to grab a meal.

Walking into the restaurant, Lily chose a closed booth in the corner to set the tone of the date. She laughed out loud after noticing Amos didn't blink once the whole walk here! As she excused herself to use the loo, she felt a firm grasp on her rear end. Spinning around, wand in hand, she realized no one was there. However, Lily smelled the aroma of woods. _I just came from outside anyway._ Rushing off, Lily quickly ran back to the safe haven of Diggory's arms.

He chuckled when he saw her, " Did you see Moaning Myrtle in there?!" Her face paled even more but stifled a quiet laugh. They were the only ones in the restaurant due to the "couple's' special" in the- oh wait never mind- Potter just walked in with Jones in his arms.

Lily and Amos had already finished their meals and were now leaning against each other, arms wrapped around shoulders. But something was wrong. She realized too late. Lily almost wanted to cry now. Lily Evans did not feel **anything** when with Diggory. Yes, she felt safe and secure, but all **friends** do. With a date you need to have butterflies or something. Before anything got any more awkward, Lily began to say something but was shut down by her brain sensors.

Elizabeth Jones had led Potter to the booth across from them. James flailed helplessly as Jones threw herself on his lap and continued an extravagant "tutorial" session. Lily had enough.

"Thanks for the dinner Amos," Lily concluded their meal politely. As Amos swiped her cheek with a feathery touch, she reluctantly grabbed his hand.

"I'm so sorry, it's just that-" she broke off, voice quavering as she subtly glanced behind them. His eyes clouded when he nodded.

" I know what you mean," he said looking over to the booth across, "I guess we can just be friends. Really good friends I hope."

Lily sighed heavily, " Thank you so much for understanding."

She couldn't help feeling so guilty for doing this to him, so decided to give him a last parting kiss. She stepped up and pecked his lips, pouring all emotion into it. He hugged her tightly as they walked out the door, leaving quite a few galleons.

Diggory put on a fake smirk and although he knew the answer, "So who you got your mind on now?" Lily giggled softly, leaning into the crook of his neck.

What they didn't notice was what happened behind them both. Jones wolfed down her expensive salad and wine while Potter stared helplessly after the two.

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Don't worry guys! Amos and Lily are going to be great friends even though the date didn't work out to their favor. Expect some action- and I'm not talking romantic, I mean REAL action next chapter. Make sure to leave reviews and come back for more!


	6. Chapter 8

As I said last time, expect some violence in this chapter! I wanted to take a break from all the love and hate flying around, even though there still is some in this update, so I added some fighting. This chapter is really long and took me a long while to write and think up, so enjoy!

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 **Chapter 8: The Attack**

Lily stood with grace, confidence, and a straight posture while briskly walking to her next class with only one thing on her mind- her Potions essay. Professor Slughorn assigned a nasty two foot essay on Anti-Paralysis potions that heals paralysis. Lily stayed up for hours refining a final draft of her three foot parchment that took her a whole week to draft out and edit. _It was worth it though_ , she thought back to the two hours of sleep she had missed last night. Not believing that the glorious, tea-stained parchment was hers, Lily ran her fingers down the width of the banded roll. The black ink came from the owl feather she received from Alice three years ago in their fourth year.

The red-ribboned roll of parchment was now neatly placed in her leather satchel around her shoulder. _Almost there!_ she thought excitedly, not clearly thinking about the suddenly moving staircase beneath her, until she was harshly jolted to the right. _Oh Agrippa! If I'm tardy, Slughorn will certainly take points off my essay for it being late._ She remembered how he was in such a rotten mood at breakfast and scrambled up the stairs. Pulling a large mahogany door using both hands with all her might, the door slowly but surely creaked open.

Lily stepped forward and fully opened the door using all her strength. The hallway was pitch black, but she could hear whispers and some light in the far distance. _I hope this gets me to the dungeons soon,_ she thought worriedly while running her scarlet painted fingernails along the rim of her satchel which held her beloved essay. Out of the blue, the whole hallway lit up in flames from torches along the edge of the wall. She yelped and attempted to escape through the door which was now apparently jammed. Like a flame igniting gasoline, it hit Lily Evans that she was in the west wing of Hogwarts, the third floor that had been banned for as long as she could remember. It would be such a shame to find the Head Girl in a forbidden part of the castle. The realization motivated her muscles to strain and ram into the rough, wooden surface of the door, attempting to break free. The screeches coming from her windpipe allowed the five pairs of footsteps to sneak up on her before the real war began.

"Leaving so soon Mudblood?" a drastically familiar voice inquired, laced with heavy hostility. _No no, please no! Not Snape!_ Lily felt like the blood had been drained from her when she turned to face the menacing Slytherins. _Oh Merlin help me!_ she cried silently. Snape, Avery, Malfoy, Rosier, and Black stood staring at their prey.

"Now, what have we got here? Our very own Head Girl up close and personal all with her filthy blood," Lucius Malfoy sneered, arms crossed as he stepped toward her trembling figure.

"Oh wait, guys!" Avery took his chance to step up, " I think she's scared!"

The group laughed until Rosier piped up, "What a disgrace to the Mudblood kind. They're already so low!" This was now becoming a game to them, so Lily took the chance to reach for her wand attached on the inside of her robes.

She was suddenly stopped when excruciating pain hit her arm, and froze her in the spot. Looking up dreadfully slow, Lily found herself face to face with Snape, who was gripping his wand tightly, "I don't think so flower." He laughed cruelly as he knew she kept her wand in her robe, and with a swift flick, had it lying on the floor.

Lily fell to the floor as Regulus Black placed a curse on her knees, forcing them to buckle violently. She screamed in pain, suddenly wishing to disappear into thin air when Avery turned to her yelling, "Expulso!"

The floor tiles in front of her face exploded into a million particles, many sharp, that hit her face and hands, covering them in scratches and cuts.

Malfoy ran at her from behind and smirked the traditional Malfoy smirk while sending out the unforgivable curse, "CRUCIO!"

Lily felt her body rip up in the pain; it was so intense so powerful, she felt as if the sun itself was burning inside her. The sensation rushed through her body in waves as her mind was being toyed with, and didn't realize the abrupt opening of the doors behind her.

The five Slytherins stared at one another in panic and horror and scrambled off into the opposite hallway which lit up after them. Lily was a pile of mess soaking in her own tears she didn't know were leaking as she lay helpless, her energy to stay alive draining away by the minute. Her sight soon drifted of to complete blackness.

* * *

 _James earlier that morning_

"Ugh, Moony why the bloody hell did you have to wake us up so early?" James asked, half asleep.

"Because Sirius would have been late to class for the fourth time since the start of term, which is saying something! Wormtail hasn't even finished his essay; if it weren't for me he would have a _Poor_ on it... Slughorn is in a dreadful mood this morning," Remus announced with dignity.

"Whatever... We still have thirteen minutes till class starts," Prongs murmured, groaning after glancing at his wristwatch.

"Even Evans isn't here," Sirius chirped in, yawning. As Sirius laid his head back on the wooden desk after groggily realizing no one else stepped foot in the classroom at 9:00am, and Peter was rushing to finish his neglected essay, James decided to pull out the Marauder's Map, curious about what everyone was doing at this time of day, but what he saw certainly woke him up.

He half-heartedly looked around the wrinkled paper to see most people walking up to their classes but as he opened the parchment up more, the **Lily Evans** dot was surrounded by those Slytherin gits.

 _No Merlin this is not happening! NO WAY!_ he thought as he immediately got up, sprinting out of the Potions room. Sirius and Remus took a brief glance at eachother and followed him out, while Peter hurriedly finished his essay.

James rushed through the hallways at an incredibly fast rate, fury filling through him at the thought of those Slytherins even laying one of their so-called "pure" fingers on Evans, while Moony and Padfoot were dashing behind him.

The trio grappled with the heavy, jammed door, finally pushing it open with the adrenaline they had left. Sirius knew that look in James hazel eyes; it was the same look he had after his mum had been hit with dangerous curses while fighting death eaters the past summer.

They advanced forward to see Lily whimpering in pain while the Slytherins scurried out the other way.

 _Cowards,_ thought Remus as he saw them run off, but acted in a heartbeat when he saw Sirius attempt to go after his brother and the other individuals of the gang.

"It's not worth it," Moony growled to Padfoot through gritted teeth.

James' stomach felt as if he had been stabbed through the chest for eternity, as he saw the state Lily was in. He gently picked up her weightless body, and Remus instinctively ran to tell Professor Slughorn what he'd witnessed. Sirius grasped onto the handle of Lily's leather bag that lay disregarded on the blown-up stone floor, putting the neatly rolled parchment back in, and ushered a shocked James to the infirmary.

Madam Pomfrey promptly put Lily in a cot as she caught sight of her lifeless body. Fretting over the extensive damage that the attackers could have done, she eagerly questioned James and Sirius over what they knew occurred and who was involved, not letting her sight wander to the two as she worked on Lily.

A few hours later, Lily stirred from her unconsciousness, and the first thing that came to mind before Snape and her physical state was her essay. Lily Evans' eyes flew open and she was about to sit up until she realized where she was.

As she tried to push herself up, it was like her body had ropes binding her to stay down. The sudden movement caused everyone around her (the Marauders, Mary, and Kathleen) to look at her and have looks of relief wash over them.

Then it hit Lily. Everything, every little detail of what had transpired in that secluded third floor corridor; all the pain and burning feeling pulsed through her. She suddenly felt so exposed, vulnerable, and weak. She let them win, she let them take away her security, her body.

Mary quickly got up to get Madam Pomfrey, while Remus inquired on how she was feeling, but the only thing Lily could get out was…

"Did any of you turn in my essay for Potions?" she inquired, her voice hoarse, optimistically hoping someone did.

Before Remus could answer, James smirked and piped in, "Only you would say that after waking up. Well at least we know she hasn't gone mad." He playfully grinned at her, amused at how only Lily Evans would say that after being unconscious.

Madam Pomfrey conducted several different tests on Lily while the others impatiently waited outside the draped curtains, and concluded that Lily didn't have any lasting damage except for a few sore muscles and a severe headache, which could easily be treated with the right potion.

Lily gradually gained full consciousness and began pleading Madam Pomfrey that she could go to her dorm in the Gryffindor tower to stay with her friends. Meanwhile, Sirius and Peter went down to get some food from the Great Hall, and Kathleen did the great pleasure of handing in Lily's prized essay, while the rest of them were discussing a variety of topics, mainly including the attack.

Hours went by, and soon the visitors were excused away from Lily by Madam Pomfrey after they had late lunch together. The girls gave her careful, warm hugs and walked out the curtains. Unfortunately, James Potter wouldn't take any of this nonsense about having to go to classes, and conducted quite a rampage on the fact. Remus and Peter soon bade their good-byes, as Remus was set on making sure Peter did a good job on his last-minute essay, wishing Lily the best of recovery, leaving Sirius struggling with James and Poppy Pomfrey pushing, well trying, them out of the Hospital Wing.

"J-James! Poppy means well; we can't be with Evans all the- t-time!" Sirius strained his muscles while pulling him away. James would have none of it though.

"I don't see what's wrong with that! You think I'll be able to concentrate in class anyway?!" he bellowed, startling them all.

Sirius sighed in silent agreement and shrugged at Pomfrey, "Can't do anything when he's this stubborn…" Sirius stood there glaring at his best mate, then walked off to Transfigurations, giving up. He secretly hoped James and Lily could make up their problems- the whole school knew there was some tension between the two.

Madam Pomfrey looked as if she was going to pull her golden locks right off. After many silent internal battles, she composed herself and allowed James to stay. She thought to herself _I'm rewarded with yet another patient_ but instead spoke aloud, "It never ends does it?"

Madam Hooch slumped in, carrying Frank Longbottom on her shoulder, with Alice trailing behind the pair, soothing him with words.

As Pomfrey was tending to Frank, James grabbed a chair a pulled it next to Lily's bed. "You had us a right good scare there you know," he said solemnly.

"How did you know where I was?" she asked, not even bothering to mask her curiosity.

"Er...Well...um... you see there's this thing that we made..." said James cautiously picking his words, "It's a map and it reveals where everyone is and the layout of the castle and stuff." James then wondered if he should have revealed that to her.

"Do you have it?" She asked, her green eyes glistening with interest.

James couldn't say no, not to Lily at least, "Here it is." He braced himself for the worst while pulling out the worn piece of parchment, " _I solemnly swear I'm up to no good_." And like that, Hogwarts was shown through the map.

Lily stared down at it in awe, but was hit back to reality when she saw the Slytherins who attacked her were in Dumbledore's office. _Serves them right,_ she thought defiantly, pushing that memory aside.

"Well this year has gone off with a interesting start. It's only the what… the third week of school? And all of this has happened," he said after some time, trying to sneak a little hint to her that he wanted another chance at getting her. He anxiously waited for her response and scooted closer, where he was sitting at the edge of her cot by her thigh. He grinned a bit when she folded the map and handed it back, a tinge of pride sparking a whole new tune to the melody they were playing at.

Lily was just about to reply when the rich mahogany doors shot open abruptly, with a flushed faced Elizabeth Jones in its midst. She stalked all the way over to James, not even bothering to notice Lily all bruised up, and yelled at James, fuming like a bull who's been trying to get the red cape for ages, "I've been waiting at the bloody library for the past thirty-five minutes! Three days ago, you said we were meeting up there with ME! What in Merlin's name do you think you're doing here with Lily Evans!?"

James stifled a groan and retorted back, "Well I didn't plan for the Head Girl to be attacked at school and get sent to the Hospital Wing! I just needed to check on her to make sure she's still able to do her share as Head! Honestly woman, give your man a break for once! How could you be so clingy?" It all came pouring out all at once, and before he had any time to regret what he had just done to their relationship, a sharp, stinging sensation ripped through his cheek as her hand and his face impacted on the spot.

Struggling internally, Jones gasped in horror as the red welt of her palm bloomed on his gorgeous face. "What did- Oh my- Wait she- but it was- I'm sorry!" she cried, stuttering after she realized James was only here on a school-based deal. Elizabeth was crushed against him in an instant, attempting at wiping her slap off his pale skin, but to no avail.

"I'm so so sorry. I just didn't understand… I thought you wanted to see her since-since-"

"Okay, okay, Lizzie I'm alright," James scoffed, tenderly pushing her out of his arms, "You know I've suffered more than this. I'm in bloody Quidditch for Merlin's sake!" Potter jeered, pointing to his cheek, however, earning no giggles from any of the girls. _Wait. Girls?! Lily! Oh bloody hell, Lily's still here!_ He whipped around with Jones still attached to his waist, possibly hanging off of him.

What he saw mentally and emotionally tore him apart like needles piercing through his heart to be met with Death himself on the other side. She gazed right through his eyes with no emotion. Nothing. Not even hurt, nor sorrow, not even anger. Lily Evans was a clean slate just daring someone to try and paint on her. She stared at him for awhile with a blank face, and his knees buckled violently under her empty, intense eyes, along with Lizzie's weight and her pleas of guilt. When Elizabeth began pecking him on the neck, Lily finally had the grace to look away, with the same straight look he must have had on the train ride.

"Hey! That's enough! I said it's okay!" James growled from under her.

"Oh, okay…" she sheepishly smirked, "We could always go to the library for some more tutoring if you're done with Head stuff."

Potter was tempted to turn back to Evans, but wouldn't trust himself with seeing her face again, and reluctantly followed Elizabeth out the drapes. They left one moment too early to hear the soft sniffles from Lily's cot.

* * *

So now it's James's turn to get a taste of what he'd done to Lily before on the Hogwarts Express. Just know that this is taking place in their seventh year, so Lily and Snape's friendship had already broken apart by the time he took part in the attack on her. Also, if you caught onto the small detail- it really is still their third week of school! We have a whole lot more Jily coming up and I'm planning on doing the story of the little time they have after graduation, like their wedding, career, etc. as a sequel once I complete this story (which won't be anytime soon). As always, make sure to leave a review and keep up with the story!


	7. Chapter 9

Here I am with yet another chapter! The last one was extremely long and had some violence so I'm giving you a more emotional plot in this chapter. Besides our wonderful Lily, it features the one and only Amos Diggory. Believe me, it gets quite emotional and I think you all will like it. Make sure to let me know what kind of drama you guys like better!

* * *

 **Chapter 9: An Old Friend**

Lily Evans was done. Done with friends, done with love, done with life as a whole. Lily was so done that she was too busy contemplating negative thoughts about life, and didn't hear the main doors to the Hospital Wing swing open and slam shut. The draped curtains were pushed away and Amos Diggory rushed in to find the girl that he secretly wished he could still have… _No! Not now! She's hurt for Merlin's sake! Ok, ok, deep breaths, whew, she's not dead. Amos listen, we're still friends._

Evans stared up at Amos for the longest time, leaving him swimming in pools of her enchanting green eyes. Diggory swayed up to her and pulled a stool to sit by her cot, "Hey Lils, how you doing so far?" Amos attempted at the casual route, which seemed to work pretty well.

"It's nice to see you Amos. Glad you could make it," she genuinely smiled, rose lips pressed together… _Oh my gosh I really need to get this under control!_

He awkwardly cleared his throat and continued to hear her side of the story, "So umm… oh yeah, what exactly happened?" Lily's eyes clouded with grief and resentment so he quickly added, "Oh I mean you don't have to answer… I just wanted to know, you know, how normal _friends_ would." Amos emphasized the word "friend" earning a confused glare from Lily, which went straight back to sorrow.

"No, no. I can do this," she replied in a hurry, trying to convince herself more than him. She started to sit up, wincing in pain, thankful for Diggory's strong arms to guide her. Criss-crossed on her bed, she began the personal experience from the time she realized she was in the west wing to the part where she hesitantly added the fact that the Marauders saved her.

"So James saved you?" he inquired a little too quickly.

"Well, I'm not sure who it was, but sort of. Anyway, I'm thankful that no major damage has been done; Madam Pomfrey said it's only the strained muscles left since I took the concussion potion for my headache," Lily concluded.

"Ahh, that's good. I'm assuming you'll be out in no time then?"

"If Pomfrey doesn't keep fretting over me. I don't know if she knows, but I have Head business to attend!"

"I'll be glad to tell her if you want-"

"No! No, dear God no! Pomfrey will be after me apologizing for holding me back from duties and won't ever stop until-" she cut herself short when Amos smirked, quite amused from her rambling. Lily punched him in the arm, chuckling lightly and they both laughed at each other and everything else.

"Hey Amos?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you. For everything. For coming here, talking to me, making me laugh…"

He got off the stool and sat on her cot right beside her, wrapping his arm gently but securely around her shoulder, "Anything for you Lils."

They sat there, arm-in-arm, nuzzled against each other comfortably when Amos broke the silence, " If you don't want to answer or if you just don't wanna say anything, you don't have to, but I'm just curious," he began softly, gazing at her unsure look, "if you sort of maybe even though he kind of bullied you for six years straight like that Potterboy?" Diggory wasn't sure how to word it, but it spilled like beans out of a can before he could plan out how he was going to say this. He was rewarded by a tense silence, and it was then when he realized his mistake; Amos Diggory hit Lily Evans's one and only secretly kept soft spot. She always had a comeback, always ready for questions thrown at her, even if they were flying pigs. But she wasn't ready for this; not even a slightest hint was put her way to prepare her for that question.

He was about to sincerely apologize and get ready to go, but the faintest whisper of the lightest feather managed to reach his ear canal, "That's the thing," she paused to catch a whiff of air and swallow painfully slow, "I don't know."

Diggory stared at her for a few moments as she kept her unblinking eyes on her hands ruffling the cotton sheets. His heart was chunked to the other side of his rib cage as his first real crush, not another playgirl, was falling for someone else before his very own eyes. Amos thought about what she said and questioned her for the last time, "What do mean you don't know?"

Unfortunately he was going on with it, so she would as well. Lily sighed, "Well on the train to Hogwarts, I felt something. It was weird and I've never experienced it before; it was like I sort of had a connection to him for only a second though," Amos watched her intently, trying to comprehend where she was taking this. "Again, this never happened before this year, so I'm not sure if I'm falling for his "charm" or whatever it is due to raging hormones or if something is really happening. I'm scared, Amos. I don't know what's going on, but I'm so used to reading everything out of a book and knowing it. This scares me so much, and what scares me more is that I'm supposed to hate him. But I don't!" Lily began sobbing at this point; muscles bruised and tears streaming down her lovely face struck him like lightning, but the storm wasn't over. She kept grasping into thin air for unknown words to describe this… this feeling, finding none. Lily's guard broke down muffling her whimpers with his robe sleeves as he carried her like a baby in a cradle. "Don't you see Amos? I need to hate him, but I don't! He's changed into something I can't resist. It's all his fault for doing this to me! Why can't I let go?!" Lily began shrieking into Diggory's robes, pushing herself further to muffle the sound and lose herself in nothingness.

Amos soothed her with circles on her back as she calmed from her tantrum, "I'm so sorry, Lily. I really didn't know."

"It's not your fault. Potter is doing this."

"You know what I think? I personally think you should just go with it," Amos smiled sadly.

"You think so, huh? I'm not so sure… but I guess I can try," she replied, her defensive guards slowly coming back up when the Hospital doors opened yet again. Severe panting approached the curtains right outside her cot, but suddenly stopped. Maybe she just imagined it?

Diggory stood up, smoothing down his robes, but trailed his fingers longer on the large wet spots Lily left. She guiltily whispered, "Oh. Sorry about that… I didn't mean it." Lily frowned but looked up hopefully when Amos lifted her chin and pecked her forehead.

"Remember, you never have to say sorry to me. Ever. Goodbye Lily," he whispered back.

"Aw thanks for everything Amos. I really needed you now, and you were here. The only one in fact. See you later," she smiled and hugged him tightly when he bent down to her level; it was too much for her to stand up. Thinking her headache impaired her eyesight somehow, Lily ignored the drapes slightly pulled to the side, then put back to its original position as the figure behind it ran away, quite fast, leaving the soft pitter-patter of footsteps.

* * *

I wonder who was behind the drapes, and hopefully you do too, but you'll find out next chapter! Tell me if it's just me, but I love how Amos is so selfless and such a good friend. Lily really let out a whole lot this time, and there's what y'all have been waiting for! She finally admits she's beginning to fall for James- that's a huge step for a Jily fanfiction! Next chapter we'll get back to the Marauders.


	8. Chapter 10

After all that dramatic Lily and Amos action, we're back to the Marauders! I guess I shouldn't be so excited since it isn't something to be so happy about…

* * *

 **Chapter 10: Feel the Heartbreaking Truth**

He didn't know nothing. He knew everything. No. He knew nothing and didn't know everything. All he knew was that his crush for six years was with another guy, and he suddenly didn't care about the hickies from _his own_ girlfriend that were currently covering any visible skin. James Potter needed to vent, even if it was what girls did, but he was done. The Gryffindor common room door was jarred open a slight bit revealing a fifth-year couple snogging in the dim hallway. James furiously pulled them apart to find the girl was a Ravenclaw he recognized- Gloria Chang. He lowly growled at her, "Detention at 6:00 after dinner sharp in McGonagall's office. Now, GET OUT AND DON'T BOTHER COMING BACK!" She squealed with fright, tears springing out and ran out of sight. "And you," he continued, turning to the Gryffindor boy with chattering teeth, "What a disgrace! Hooking up with a Ravenclaw…" The boy looked up and- "Samuel Thomas! NO WAY! Detention for ONE WEEK every morning at 7:00 with Professor Slughorn! Just...just… GO DO SOMETHING BUT KEEP AWAY FROM THAT GIRL!" Potter slammed his rough, calloused fist into the wall behind Samuel, who yelped and ran off into his room. James stalked into his own dorm where Remus was starting on the assignment due in three weeks, Peter was chomping on some potato crisps, and Sirius could be heard snoring all the way from the Great Hall.

James slumped down onto his bed and pulled the drapes around him, shutting everyone out of not only his bed but his life. Peter and Sirius glanced at each other with unmistaken worry in their eyes after Sirius abruptly awoke from his slumber, and Remus silently got up to pull open the curtains. He expected some sort of anger, but the look of desperation James gave him confused Remus to the brim of being able to speak.

"Prongs, what-" he started slowly before being interrupted.

"No. Remus, don't you dare 'Prongs' me right now. I don't want to talk to anyone until that person has an answer for everything that's happening," it was almost a low growl.

"I can help James. In fact, I really want to help. Just please tell me what's going on," he paused to hesitate before pushing the curtains around the bed to one side. "No, wait. Tell all of us what's going on."

James sighed, burying his head into his palms and agreed to Moony's request, "Alright. Can you honestly answer something for me?" The rest of the Marauders nodded, allowing Prongs to continue, "What did you think when I told you I wanted to ask Elizabeth Jones out?" He stared down at his fingers toying with the hem of his bed sheets while realizing his girlfriend's name sounded so foreign on his tongue.

Peter abruptly halted on his potato crisps and offered some advice first, "Prongs, honestly I didn't understand, and I still don't get these relationship things, so I'd inquire someone else." He gestured to the other two and forgot about his crisp bag.

Remus scratched the back of his neck, "Um… I guess it was good you were getting somewhere in your love life. I really didn't make the choice, but hear me out when I say I will always agree with what's best for you. I think starting to date for real this time is helping with-"

Sirius had enough with this conversation which everyone knew was getting nowhere. He got up to interject with his own opinion when a faint knock could be heard on the door.

Padfoot shushed the conversing Marauders when he got up to open the door a crack, peeking a bit to see the visitor. Lily Evans stood there, wiping flowing tears from her eyes, leaving eyeliner smudges on her pale cheeks. He almost broke down then and there to see her like this, and before he could say anything, she quietly whispered something he couldn't catch.

"Is anyone in there?" she repeated, a little louder this time.

"Umm ya, we were umm… ya," he stuttered over his words, staring into her glistening eyes. This time they weren't filled with glistening joy, but soaking with tears.

"Can-can we talk? Like out here," her miniscule voice reverberated through the gloomy hallway, barely lighted by the one torch on the wall.

He nodded in confusion, shutting the door gently behind him. Lily began to speak, but ended up whimpering in his arms. Sirius wasn't used to being the caring type, but ended up with his arms around the small of her back in a protective manner.

"Oh Lily, what's going on?" he was truly shattered on the inside, not used to this side of Evans.

"Can you p-please tell him something for me?" her tears soaked his undershirt, but Lily then stood up strongly with a defiant look and continued in a monotone voice, "T-tell him that I am DONE with his games. I don't want him to come apologize to me but end up snogging that… that girl for an hour then leave with her without another word. Tell him that I don't want him ever speaking to me AT ALL since it ALWAYS ends up the other way we want it to. Tell him. MAKE SURE YOU TELL HIM!" She was truly done.

"Wait. Who is 'he' and who's 'that girl'?" he asked her lightly.

"Aww Sirius Black come on! Context clues!" she whined, about to give up. "Oh really?! I'm talking about the Head Boy and his girl!"

Sirius stopped. Everything. It suddenly dawned on him what those words meant to them both, "Of course. I'll tell him right now, but know that I'm always here. Lily, I'm going to be there for you unlike those brats you called friends who chose guys over you in a heartbeat. Just know," he lifted her damp chin and his voice cracked slightly, "I'll ALWAYS be here for you Lily. ALWAYS."

They both smiled warmly at each other as Lily straightened her robes and hair after wiping her tears, then she turned and left. His smile disappeared quicker than how fast it came when it was his turn to turn around, and saw Remus standing there with the same heartbroken face.

* * *

Awww I almost wanted to cry while writing this. Who else gets that aching physical pain when they read or write something so horribly depressing it actually hurts? Well, I do. Also, I'll be out of state this coming weekend and the next weekend is the only time I have to study for upcoming finals with my parents constantly nagging about it. Just because I won't be posting for a while DOES NOT mean I have given up the story. In fact, I'll be writing part by part of the next chapter whenever I have time, so expect the next chapter soon!


	9. Chapter 11

I am so very sorry about not updating in awhile, and in fact, I've just got back from a three week camp out of state so I haven't been able to post. I did say I wasn't giving up on the story, so here's' the next chapter, and thanks to everyone who kept up with my story!

* * *

 **Chapter 11: Honesty**

They walked in together to find Wormy back with his crisps, but this time throwing little crumbs into Prongs' wide-open mouth. "Well?" Peter asked, not the least bit interested.

James fell into a fit of coughing when he began choking, managing to get out, "So who was it?"

Remus answered a bit too quickly, "Nothing. Just some… kid who asked for… umm… ya he wanted participation in our next prank… so Padfoot here gallantly came to the rescue saying that we were the Marauders, not the Marauders and The Prat Who Wanted A Chance." He winced, wondering if Prongs and Wormy would buy it.

His lies were rewarded with the obnoxious laughter from Peter and James put on a proud smirk and puffed out his chest. Sirius stared at Remus in disbelief, jaw hanging down to his stomach, but his response was unexpected, "How could you? We have to tell him. For Evans' sake."

Remus groaned and continued, "Haha very funny, but I can't believe you both ACTUALLY bought that," he hesitated, proceeding when he saw Sirius's reassuring smile, "Of course no one would dare ask to take part in our pranks, right?" Peter continued laughing, not hearing a word just spoken, but James sat up straight, sensing the uneasiness in his friend's voice.

"Then what did happen out there?" he asked, genuinely intrigued at this point. James pulled the crisps bag away from Peter and set it on the dresser table, turning to face Sirius and Remus curiously.

"WellLilywantedtotellyousomethingandImgoingtohavetosayitrightnow," he finished quicker than the blink of an eye.

"Wait, Lily was there?" James soared to the door, not sure why he was excited. Remus stifled a laugh but Sirius ended up snickering on the floor, curled up into a ball. None of them were surprised James was still hung onto Lily, but it was almost too funny how that was the only thing he caught out of Sirius's remark.

"No, Prongs!" Padfoot stopped him before the door could be opened, and lowered his voice down to a grim tone, "She's not there."

"Oh," was all James could sheepishly respond back when his hand flew to scruffle his hair. "So?"

"Well she doesn't want to talk to you any more, and told me to tell you she doesn't want any apologies," he trailed off when he saw James' defeated look.

"Wait, Sirius," Remus interrupted quietly while turning to James, "What did you do exactly?"

Prongs blushed at the thought of telling them what exactly happened with him and Lizzie, so just refrained to summarizing it. "I didn't do anything for the most part," he gave Remus a glare when he sighed in annoyance, "but Elizabeth came while I was seeing how Lily was doing and she started snogging me-"

"Wait. IN FRONT OF EVANS?!" Sirius blurted out astonished.

"And did you snog her back too?" Peter continued, "In front of her?"

"Well yeah, but-"

"Oh Merlin Prongs what have you done? No wonder she was crying…" he grimaced at the accidental confession, hoping James didn't catch that last part, but of course he did.

"WHAT?! SHE WAS CRYING?!" he roared in frustration.

"But continue on please," Remus added.

James got up, unable to give in to any more requests as he stormed out the dorm room.

"PRONGS WAIT! SHE DOESN'T WANT TO TALK TO YOU!" Peter called him back at the top of his lungs.

The room went quiet as James sulked back into the dorm and banged his head against the bedpost while attempting at tearing his hair out. Peter took the distraction to grab his bag of chips again, but realized his appetite was lost within the commotion. Remus and Sirius jumped into bed as Peter followed; they all watched as James fell onto his bed fully dressed and closed the curtains for the second time that night.

About an hour later, Remus whispered quietly, "Why do you think Lily was crying about James and Jones?"

"Moony, I have a confession to make. I'm starting to think Lily thinks of James as more than just another Head that she has to partner with for a year." Sirius replied.

"Yeah. Me too." Remus sighed, shaking his head in the darkened room.

They both listened for any movement of Peter and especially James, not wanting their supposedly "secret" conversation to be overheard, and were relieved to hear snoring. Unfortunately, Peter was the one snoring, and as the two other Marauders fell into blissful sleep, the comments that were just shared had been enough to keep an uneasy James Potter awake the **whole** night. The many hours he had to think led him to one conclusion- a sacrifice he was willing to make. _I won't let her get away this time_ , he thought when Remus's morning alarm went off.

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Ooooo the Marauders are starting to gossip! Just kidding, but that probably happens anyway. I'll definitely be back next week for a new update!


	10. Chapter 12

We have some sparks kindling into a blossoming relationship this chapter, just not the relationship you may have expected... I did make this chapter a bit longer than usual as an apology for my inability to post during my time at camp. Hope you enjoy the romance and drama in this update, and make sure to leave a review!

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 **Chapter 12: Unfortunate Events**

Lily stepped out of the Head Dormitory looking fresh and cleansed after Marlene stopped by with a book she found on charmed showers from Madam Pomfrey. Marlene thought it would help with her sore muscles from the attack, but left as fast as she appeared. Lily desperately wanted to confess to Marlene about how she's been left out whilst both Marlene and Alice have guys, but failed to. _Maybe it's time I should find one that I get butterflies with._ she contemplated the failed date with Amos and felt absolutely regretful. _But I did the right thing that time_ , she recalled their kind-of-breakup, boosting her confidence. Lily travelled straight to the Gryffindor Common Room since she felt like letting loose someplace besides the library.

She strolled into a slightly crowded common room and took her place on the bean bag chair by the fireplace. As she scanned the room, Lily's heart felt a pang of envy when she saw many couples chatting and looking so much more comfortable than she had been in a long time. _Maybe coming here wasn't such a good idea after all_ , she sighed. While staring into the fireplace deep in thought, she didn't notice Fabian Prewett staring at her from no more than what seemed to be about three feet away.

He fidgeted, and slowly walked up to her, unsure of what to say, "Um hey Lily. Er- I mean like… hi." Fabian wanted to mentally strangle himself for the embarrassing introduction, but he soon realized something that made him forget all about it.

Lily was startled as she turned to face Fabian Prewett, a single tear hanging off her chin. She faked a small smile, and quickly wiped it away after standing up, "Oh hey Fabian! Um how's it going?"

"Lily what's wrong?" he frowned when she tore her gaze from him.

"I'm not sure what you're talking about. Just stressed over our Transfiguration exam in two days," she replied nervously.

"It's not like you to cry over an exam you haven't taken yet," he took another small step toward her and cupped her cheek in his warm palm like he'd always wanted to do: it was a perfect fit. He wiped a stray tear with his thumb and continued, "Tell me what's wrong. I'll help you."

Lily's breath hitched as he took yet another step closer, aligning their figures against each other. He was really warm, almost as if he was embarrassed- _No, it's probably just the fire… OH MERLIN! BEARD OF AGRIPPA NO WAY!_ Yet there it was- the small flutter of the faintest butterfly wings close to the pit of her stomach. Lily smiled a true smile for once in that week.

"Ok then, I guess I'll tell you, but it may sound a bit awkward at first," she tentatively said.

"Nothing's awkward with you Lily. Even if it is, it's the cutest awkward there could be." Fabian grinned at his cheesy remark and Lily struggled to stifle a giggle. He stepped away and her heart plummeted at the loss of the welcoming contact, but flew right back up when he settled into the couch and invited her over.

In the middle of while they were speaking about Lily's troubles and how she was worried about how she might never find the right guy, Fabian looked on at her completely shocked. "Oh lord Lily I never knew this was the case, I mean, I still hold my word when I said I can help you."

Lily never felt better, knowing that there was someone else who was willing to help her, but she was awed at his confidence when he spoke the next few words, "Lily, it's now or never. I need to break it to you…" he sat up and looked her straight in the eyes with such raw emotion she could barely breath, "It hasn't even been an hour since we started talking, and-and I think I'm already falling for you." She gasped in both surprise and relief when he stood up and she did too, "I'm going to take a huge leap here Lily, but I hope you understand where I'm coming from." By now, about half the common room turned to look at the two, but his next words created dead silence in their presence, "Lily Evans, will you please go out with me?"

She almost fell over but he grasped onto the small of her back, sending a warm tingle through her spine. Lily was flabbergasted because no one has ever sincerely asked her out before. "I think I might give it a shot," she smiled slyly. Her eyes widened as he sleekly bent down to kiss her fully on the lips, but everyone in the room gasped as she slowly wrapped her arms around his neck and decided to kiss him back.

"Oh pu-leeease. Get a room guys!" Elizabeth Jones strutted out from the crowd, hands on her hips.

Fabian sheepishly concentrated on the floor, but Lily was tingling with excitement, and didn't let Jones get to her this time, "Gladly!" The room burst into fits of laughter and cheers, encouraging Lily and Fabian to 'get a room', and she was about to listen to them when the door slammed and loud footsteps from the Boy's Dorm corridor could be heard by the whole of London.

* * *

James's thunderous steps thumped down the flight of stairs leading to the Common Room, but not many people were able to hear him over the fluttering commotion of rumors on Lily and Fabian becoming official that were spreading. He reached the bottom of the stairs to look for Lily and confess everything to her- he had thought it all over the night before and was prepared for anything except what had actually occurred. His piercing eyes scanned over every head until he found the one and only plush of silky red hair he wanted to himself. James's heart thumped against his rib cage so vigorously, he thought it would shatter into microscopic shards of bone. He was about to start toward the beautifully-freckled, green-eyed girl when he noticed something. That head of hers that he was about to claim as his own was leaning on someone else's broad shoulders while those nimble, maroon-polished fingers he wanted to hold all night and everyday were found playing with someone's Gryffindor robe. Fabian Prewett.

The sight shocked him so, and he was about to fall over when he heard the following words from a gossiping group of fourth-years, "I can't believe she said yes to Fabian! It's super exciting- the Head Girl in a new relationship!"

"It sure is exciting for everyone except, well, Potter… right?"

"Well he's committed in a relationship with Jones so it's not like he'd be against it."

"Are you kidding me, Melanie?! Everyone knows he's been pining after her for years. Just because he's dating some popular chick doesn't mean he's moved on!"

The conversation was too much for James, and he needed time to process the fact that Lily wasn't up for grabs at the moment. In fact, she was actually in a relationship! He had almost forgotten about his own girlfriend when Elizabeth Jones ran up to him and enveloped James in a tight hug.

"I was wondering when you'd get down here James! It takes you forever to get ready, but I'm not complaining. I'm actually digging that bed head you've got going," she giggled seductively.

At the mention of James Potter, the entire Hogwarts castle went pindrop silent, awaiting his reaction to the new relationship. James lightly shrugged off the stares he was receiving and gave his classic Potter smirk which was directed toward Fabian in almost a brotherly manner as if saying "nice job bro".

James then turned to Elizabeth who was still admiring his ruffled hair and held his arm out for her, "And I'm digging the thought of grabbing dinner."

The utter disbelief was almost immediately replaced by smug pleasure on Jones's face as she squeezed his arm and pulled James out of the Common Room like he was a dog on her leash. The Gryffindors who had seen what had just happened were attempting to compute the fact that James just… let it go. It was an entirely new concept to all of them. The silence was soon broken by Melanie, the fourth-year, surrounded by a group of gossiping Gryffindor girls, who exclaimed, "See? I told you he was over her!"

Lily was dumbfounded at James's reaction, but Fabian was too busy getting the fact he was dating Lily Evans into his head. She stared blankly into the crackling flames until the soothing voice of her boyfriend shook her back to reality. "Lily, you look tired… if you want, you can go to sleep right now and we can go on a date tomorrow. Only if you'd like… I'm still new to this whole-"

"Of course I'd like to go on a date with you tomorrow, Fabian. It's something to look forward to when I'm going to sleep," Lily smiled sweetly and he couldn't thank Merlin enough for her. Her hips swayed away from the buzzing common room, but not before she gave him a goodnight peck on the cheek.

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Well that was dramatic and included more than enough tension between the couples. Let me know your opinions on what should happen next! Until next week :)


	11. Chapter 13

This chapter's going to be really sweet and happy while strengthening some bonds on Lily's side of the story. Now that she has a boyfriend and is going on that date, what could happen? Sorry it came a bit late, but I did make it extra long for you all!

 **Chapter 13: New Beginnings**

"Mary! Grab me the sponge!" Kathleen frantically barked out.

"Which sponge? I'm looking for it, but I can't move one of my hands!" Mary was digging through the small pouch as fast as her left hand could possibly go.

"Oh Merlin's beard Mary, that's the wrong pouch!" Kathleen frustratedly paused her rapid actions on Lily.

Lily's eyes had been shut for what seemed like eternity and her body was so still it could've been mistaken for unconscious. The heat against her scalp was almost unbearable in addition to the constant pounding of an object on her face.

"Kathleen, you'll have to deal with the tweezers- I can't do it with one hand," Mary remarked.

"How much longer is this gonna take?" Lily exasperatedly remarked. They've been at this for about an hour now.

"Almost done, but Lily, you have to stop moving your face," Kathleen whispered, too focused on tweezing the redhead's eyebrows.

Lily was tingling with excitement and anxiety for her first date with Fabian Prewett. She could feel the heated curls bouncing against her back as Mary let them drop from the curling spell. Mary put her wand down and left the room while Kathleen was busy doing who knows what to Lily's poor face. At one point, she accidently tweezed some of Lily's skin, and with a yelp, Lily jumped up from the makeshift chair and brushed herself off. "Ok, I think that's enough. It's just a date, not my wedding or anything," she chuckled. "Where'd Mary run off to?"

"Don't worry about me- I just needed to gather a few things," Mary smirked while proudly holding up a wondrous yet simple outfit for Lily. It consisted of dark, fitted jeans and a bottle green V-neck sweater with tight sleeves. "Oh, don't forget the shoes! They're vital to the outfit." Mary gathered the clothing on one arm and brought out a new pair of black hunter boots.

Kathleen grinned as wide as a mouth could possibly spread as Lily let out an audible gasp, "Are those… for me?"

"Of course, silly. It's not like I'm going on a date," Mary remarked.

"Thank you guys so much! You both are like the sister I always wanted!" Lily reached out for her outfit, and was shocked to see her nails were miraculously done as well. "You both really went all-out this time, didn't you."

"We aren't done, either," Kathleen stated as if it was obvious.

"What do you mean? I'm totally overdressed already! You've done my makeup, hair, nails, have an outfit ready… what else is there?" Lily was confuddled at this point and was so lost in thought as to what could be left to prepare for her date, she didn't notice Mary and Kathleen grab an antique velvet box. Her clouded eyes came back into focus when something bright and shiny appeared in front of her. "Oh. My. Gosh. Is this even real?" Kathleen held the box as Mary grabbed the gorgeous pair of studded silver earrings from their case. "Guys, you really shouldn't have.." Lily trailed off, lost in what to think or say. "I feel like a princess now," she giggled, feeling the slight weight of the dangling earrings on her lobes.

"You can be our princess, your royal highness Lily," Kathleen sarcastically said in a deep voice as Mary curtsied.

"Oh shove off." All three of them fell into a heap of laughter that could be heard down in the Gryffindor common room.

Fabian repeatedly unbuttoned and rebuttoned the top button on his white collar shirt. He was unsure which Lily would prefer, and soon realized she probably wouldn't even notice. He began to think of her reaction to the plans he'd made for their date. Lost in thought, he only looked up when the noise in the common room abruptly died. Lily was standing on the bottom step, shuffling her feet, yet looking like a goddess. Fabian had never seen anything so beautiful and his mouth went dry as she sheepishly stepped toward him. He began to wonder why exactly this magnificent, strawberry-haired angel was getting closer until he realized she was his date.

Saliva began returning, and Fabian hoped he didn't look to red when he held out his arm for her to take. "Wow… Lily, you look drop dead gorgeous!" he remarked.

She blushed, letting out a soft, "Thanks, you do too."

"I hope you like what I have planned for us. I tried to think of something special but I'm sorry to disappoint-" he was instantly cut off by the freckled red-head looking as if he'd suddenly sprouted a pair of wings.

"Anything you could do for me is special, and I bet I'll love it," Lily reassured him.

Fabian grinned, "What do you think about picnics?"

"You're joking!" Lily exclaimed and Fabian's grin fell, "I absolutely love them! I remember when Tuney and I were young, my parents used to take us on the occasional picnic, and I could never get enough. It has been a while…"

Fabian lifted her chin up and whispered, "I don't want any tears today, Lily, we're going on a picnic for Merlin's sake!"

She smiled sweetly and took his hand as he lead them out of the castle.

As they strolled around Hogwarts ground, Lily glanced nervously at her french-tip manicured hands, wondering what to say. They've been making conversation about family, friends, teachers, classes, food, hobbies, and anything else you could imagine a couple would talk about on a first date. "How far away are we do you think?" Lily decided to ask.

"It's right over this hill," Fabian said as he crouched down to the floor only to lay completely down, confusing Lily. He looked up to her puzzled expression and mimicked a look of pure shock and offense. "Are you trying to say you haven't rolled down a hill?"

"Why would any sane person roll down a hill in the middle of nowhere and ruin their outfit?"

"Witches and wizards would since by a flick of a wand, they could pretend nothing ever happened… except there's the aftertaste of absolute elation," he replied.

"When you put it that way…" Lily made up her mind and crouched down in the same position as Fabian. She decided to let him go first to figure out how exactly rolling down a hill works. Expecting some sort of spell, she was completely taken aback when he began to literally _roll down the hill_.

Lily couldn't suppress her amusement and spasmed from laughing too hard until Fabian called back, "Now it's your turn!" She studied his face for any sort of joke but he was being completely serious.

"You- you want me to do that?!" she yelled back like he had asked her to jump off a cliff.

"Just this one time, or you aren't getting that picnic of yours!" he retaliated. Fabian smirked, knowing he had gotten to her when she let out a dignified huff.

Lily thought she was insane and so would anyone else who could be watching her. She tucked her hands in and splayed her arms across her chest while tightening her legs together so that she resembled a branch. With much hesitation, she started her descent to her well-deserved picnic and let her body roll against the lush grass. Eyes shut, she hollered into the windy sky, and let the shape of the ground take her to the bottom. Once the constant spin of her body began to slow down, she decided to peek out from her eyes, only to see a shaking Fabian standing above her.

Feeling embarrassed, Lily quickly stood and brushed the excess grass and dirt from off her clothing. "Well? How was I?"

In between chortles, he managed to get out, "Actually really good- for- for a first time, b- but you kind of ma- made a lot of noise and st- started shrieking in the middle." Fabian grabbed for the tree he was standing next to, and began to laugh to his heart's content. Lily blushed so hard, her freckles weren't visible under the bright red that matched her now tangled hair. She smacked his back lightly and asked for the spell that would return them to normal.

Once they were free of green splotches, Fabian asked Lily to close her eyes for the surprise, and once he led her a few steps forward and she had opened them, Lily's heart stopped beating.

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I'm not so sure whether her heart is going to stop for a good or bad reason, but we'll see next chapter. I kind of think they're pretty cute but not even close to my Jily otp. Mary and Kathleen are amazing friends and I thought it would be nice to have them act like sisters towards Lily, and for those worrying, yes Marlene and Alice are going to come back but you know the typical teenage drama. Until next time!


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